Octane Academy Founded by Ford to Broadcast Six Hours on NBC Sports Network with Hour-Long Finale on NBC July 28, 2013

Burr Ridge, Ill. – December 3, 2012 – Alli Sports, a division of the NBC Sports Group, today announced a strategic partnership with Ford around the popular motorsports reality show, Octane Academy that will be joining the Alli family of programming, as well as the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championships, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing. The deal includes on-air, on-site and digital components across the Alli and NBC Sports Group.

Back for an all-new season, Octane Academy follows motorsport celebrities Ken Block, Brian Deegan, Tanner Foust and Vaughn Gittin Jr. as they take a camp of hopefuls and put them through a gauntlet of driving and action sport challenges. The winner will have the opportunity to make it big with a Ford racing scholarship, a new Ford vehicle and the opportunity to attend an elite driving school that will allow them to keep pursuing their dream. Season Two of Octane Academy will feature six hours of original programming on NBC Sports Network beginning in June 2013, with an hour-long season finale on NBC on July 28.

"I'm really stoked about doing a second season of Octane Academy," said professional rally driver Ken Block. "With the show moving to NBC, it's really going to help get more eyeballs on the program by expanding the show's demo and reaching a wider, more mainstream audience."

In Season Two of Octane Academy each pro driver will be paired with a different Ford vehicle. Ken Block will be featuring Ford’s newcomer, Fiesta ST. The car is a perfect fit for this show given it is the best performance car in its class with 1.6-liter EcoBoost® engine and projected 197 horsepower and 215 lb.-ft. of torque. Brian Deegan will be partnered with the Ford F-150 SVT Raptor, Tanner Foust with the Focus ST and Vaughn Gittin Jr. with Mustang, providing an interesting twist to the contest.

“Octane Academy is gaining momentum and the idea of re-uniting our superstar athletes for Season Two is generating a lot of electricity,” said Mary Ellen Abraham, Ford Car Experiential Marketing Manager. “We’re excited to expand upon the show’s millennial audience through our partnership with the NBC Sports Group, which allows us to bring Octane Academy and the Ford Fiesta ST to more viewers.”

Through the multi-layered partnership, Ford will have category exclusivity and be fully integrated into the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship, as the title sponsor of three events and Official Car and Truck of the series. Additionally, Ford will be integrated through broadcast via vignettes, unique branded content, billboards and commercials, as well as being part of the Alli digital networks with moto livestream integration and exclusive branded content.

“Each year the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship continues to grow and having Ford join as the automotive category sponsor highlights the series’ continued expansion,” said Wade Martin, President of Alli Sports. “Along with the addition of Octane Academy, we at Alli are excited to enhance our motorsports offerings and continue to cultivate new audiences within action sports.”

For additional information on Alli Sports and its network of properties please visit www.allisports.com